Flavourful Saskatoon, October 14, 2019

Local Happenings 
Bulk Basket, Saskatoon’s “local, sustainable, package-free grocer,” is moving to 401 20th Street West in Riversdale. They buy Saskatchewan products whenever possible and provide a discount to those who need it most.

Boffins at Innovation Place will close its doors on November 15. It’s disappointing as it’s a beautiful space with a lovely outdoor patio and a great location beside the pond/garden.

“Second Chance Food Saskatoon is an ad-hoc committee dedicated to reducing food waste in Saskatoon. Comprised of members from various local food security, poverty, and waste reduction focused agencies, Second Chance Food seeks to advocate for and enable mechanisms that increase donation of surplus food, and encourage a more sustainable food system in our city.”

I chatted with Coralee Abbott and Daryl Grunau about City Perks’ new venture last week. Sparrow will have slightly more seating than City Perks. But the big plus is a full-size commercial kitchen with lots of space for the cooks and bakers to expand their offerings. Coralee is excited to have Wild Serendipity Foods' oven as it is well seasoned by a great baker. The two coffee shops will have a different look and different menus. To begin with, Sparrow will be open business hours from Monday to Friday. Some people have questioned the choice of a site so close to the current coffee shop, but there are lots of benefits as people and products will be able to pass back and forth quickly and easily.

A friend asked me if I was happy that Saskatoon City Council had endorsed “a locally-grown authentic farmers market at River Landing, to be operated on days that work for the farmers” (Cynthia Block’s community newsletter). Here’s my response: Cynthia's statement sounds okay on the surface, but the devil is in the details. What exactly do you mean by ‘a farmers' market’? The current SFM Co-operative entirely fills the outdoor square and building in summer (with 100 producers and a 40-year track record), but City planner Lesley Anderson talked about the space evolving from just a few vendors to something bigger and Zach Jeffries wanted the motion to be clear that it could be other stuff as well as a farmers' market on the outdoor square. All that City Council is committing to is a couple of farmers/producers selling their wares, a couple of days a week. That's not good enough for me. If you've got something as strong and positive as the SFM Co-op, why try to replace it?

Recipes 
I’m intrigued by the idea of an entire cookbook devoted to recipes that incorporate beer – from a lemon pilsner vinaigrette to beer polenta and a summer ale apple pie. Lush: A Season-by-Season Celebration of Craft Beer and Produce is by Jacquelyn Dodd (The Beeroness).

Food for Thought 
“The affordable, year-round strawberry is a relatively recent phenomenon, and the product of an industry that relies heavily on high-tech breeding, cheap labor, and a highly volatile, gaseous form of pesticides called fumigants” – from an interview with the author of Wilted: Pathogens, Chemicals, and the Fragile Future of the Strawberry Industry.

Farmers are always looking for new ways to ensure their farms’ profitability. “The phenomenon of the Midwestern pizza farm evolved partly out of ritual and partly out of necessity. Farmers are proud to use their wealth of land to host friends and family for farm-fresh dinners. . . . Today, there are more than a dozen pizza farms across Minnesota and Wisconsin.”

Flavourful Saskatoon is a weekly Monday feature. I also post articles about food that is good, clean and fair; travel; and books. You may also enjoy EcoFriendly Sask profiling Saskatchewan nature/environmental initiatives and events. 

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